Don't Play With Fire Unless You Want To Get Burned
by Banans13
Summary: The story of agirl who was Zuko's friend befor he got his scar and how their relation ship evolves.
1. Zuko's Temper

**Hi. This is my first Fanfic, so it might not be that great. Oh, HI MARISSA, A.k.a. pandasokkahats! I here by dedicate this chapter to you! (And I'll give you a randomly invisible cookie too!) **

**Ok people, yes , It's the same Hannah from Marissa's fruba Fanfic, and nooooo I am noot that obsessed!**

**Ok, well, um enjoy and review! **

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"_Hello. May I help you?" my Mother asked the soldiers at the door. _

_"We have explicit orders from the orders Fire Lord to take your Daughter to the Palace. Now." With that, the man who seemed to be in charge pushed my mother aside and began to search for me. I cowered down deeper into my dark corner, hoping and praying that they wouldn't find me. _

_"Wait! Take me! Leave Mela out of this!" She sobbed. "Please I'll give you anything! Money! Food! I'll serve in the army! Please! Anything, just don't take Mela!" The soldier threw her aside without further thought. That really made my blood boil._

_"Leave my mother alone you big bully!" I yelled, jumping up into plain sight._

_"NO!" My mother screamed. "Mela, run, get out, leave this place! Don't worry about me! I'll be fine! Ru…" The soldier had kicked her, leaving her unconscious. _

_"NO!" I screeched, running up to the man who had hurt my mother. "You brute! She didn't do anything to you! I'll… I'll… Aaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Before I could finish my empty threat I was stuffed into a sack, then nothing._

_"Hi. Um, I'm Zuko. I…I'm glad that you'll play with me. I'm really looking forward to it. Paying that is. We're going to sooo much fun together! I have lots of toys, and…um are you ok?" The little boy with his hair in a pony tail stopped running everywhere, picking up some of the most exquisite toys on earth and showing them to me, when he saw that I was clutching the seat I was sitting on till my knuckles turned white. _

_"No sir." I whispered. Ever since I was taken I haven't said much to any one. The boy walked over to me, his eyes sad. _

_" You don't have to call me sir. But why... why are you so… so… I know it's me isn't it? I'm too foolish aren't I? I'll try to be a grown up. I promise. Oh no! Now I've made you cry!" His words. They were too nice to be the son of the Evil Fire Lord who had taken me from my home, given me a scar _**(This is important.) **_and killed my mother in one night. I was six for heavens sake! But Zuko was innocent though. A bystander. And he was my only friend in this entire place, and I was making him sad. Not foe long!_

_"No, it's not you. I just had something in my eye. Now, do you want to play?" I said, whipping my tears away, and replacing them with a smile._

_"Ok! I know well be the best of friends! Honest!" And so it was. We became inseparable. Then when he grew older, he was training and learning all that he would need to be able to one-day rule. I wanted him to get the chance, for he would be a good King, not like his father. I, however, was being taught to be a proper maid, and lady. I was failing miserably at being a 'lady'. I told Zuko, and then when I showed up for lessons, I was informed that I would no longer require them. _

_Well that WAS one of the perks of being friends with the prince. We went on mini adventures together outside the Palace, and gave each other comfort when one of us felt down. Then, IT happened. _**(Zuko gets his scar.) **_He changed. He didn't talk for days. Then suddenly, he was exiled. I was part of his crew, as a maid, nothing else. He ignored me, and I worried from a distance. And that brings us to the present day. _

"Zuko has requested new sheets. And he wants his dinner ready early. Iroh wants tea, and fish, and his quarters are in need of cleaning. Get to it!" A soldier had walked up to me as I was cleaning the hallway. I sighed as I put my scrub brush into the bucket of murky bucket water. Everything that either of them wanted was always given to _me_ to do. Talk about annoying. I picked up the bucket and began to clean Iroh's room. Boy, there was food scraps everywhere! What a slob. I scrubbed it clean, and then put the bucket back in my room. I got new sheets for Iroh, and Zuko, taking my time. If it wasn't _just_ right, Zuko would throw a fit, and that demand the entire _room_ to be cleaned, and I didn't feel like doing _that._

"Mela, Mela! You're supposed to be making dinner now! Fish takes forever to make, and Zuko is dinning in a couple of hours!


	2. Mela's kiss

**Hi again people! I kinda' messed up the last chapter. (I forgot to put in the last part of it. So here it is. Oh, and I'll have a contest from now on ;)**

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Kalay, another maid, had poked her head into Zuko's room, looking nervous. "He's in one of his moods again. And if his dinner is late, well, I don't even want to know what he'll do to _this_ time." With those ominous words she left, her footsteps pounding down the metal hall. I sighed and finished quickly and headed to the kitchen.

As I slaved over the Zuko's dinner in the steamy kitchen, I couldn't help but feel my bandaged arms. I never wanted to suffer that particular discomfort again. I had finished preparing Iroh's food, and his tea was boiling. Then in walked the prince of fire himself. I was in no mood for him.

"Ahh, that looks delicious! I hope it tastes as good. For **_your_** sake." He gave me a sarcastic smile that sent shivers down my spine. The once was a time when he would smile genuinely, his face a bright ball of joy. NO. Those days were gone. He was hardened and cruel now.

As I added some spices to the fish sauce, Zuko put his course hands on my shoulders, gently sliding them towards my inner waist. I shrugged him off brutally. I retuned to the cooking, but he grabbed me by my forearms.

"Not so fast _girl_! Did I say you could return to your cooking? Remember, you are my slave, you follow my commands no Questions!" Without further conversation, he pulled me into a tight kiss. For a moment, we were kids again.

**(Flash Back)**

'_Have you ever kissed someone before?" Zuko was looking at me with interest. _

"_**No." the 13-year-old me replied. "Why have you?"**_

"_**No." He looked at me, smiling. I smiled back. We looked around to see if anyone was watching, and no one was. We leaned in and kissed. His lips felt warm on mine, but then I realized what would happen if we were caught. I broke away, both of us blushing as red as fire.**_

**(End Flash Back) - Sorry peps, I know it's short, but I've got a lot more to talk about! ; -)**

Then suddenly I was back in the present. The kiss was becoming more passionate, and I struggled even more. His hand lit on fire as I struggled to free myself. The bandages burned and fell away from my arms, smoldering on the floor.

My arms, now bare and unprotected began to blister under the intense heat. I moaned in pain and agony as I fell to my knees. Suddenly Zuko let go of me, as if he was awakened from a dream. He looked at his hands in disbelief, walking towards the door with pure horror on his face. He turned quickly, running from the room. I slowly got up, ignoring the pain in my arms. It had happened again. He had gone into a war like trance of 'Fiery' passion. I was really beginning to worry about what was happening to him

As I walked over to the sink to cool off my arms, I glanced down at the scar on my wrist. So long ago it seemed, that I was taken from my mother, and put under this vow of servitude. I bandaged my arms again and, sighing, I finished preparing Zuko's dinner, and rang the ready bell. Kalay came in and took it out. Before she did though, she glanced at my new bandages and sighed.  
"How you manage to forgive, even worry about that guy is beyond me." Before I could get in a word edge wise, she left the room, carrying the trays.

"Whatever." I replied to no one in particular. I walked out of the room, dawdling in the halls, waiting for the obvious request to do some other chore. No one on this ship was ever idle for long. When I reached the deck, another soldier approached me.

"Prince Zuko has ordered me to find you immediately and offer his apologies. Also he wasn't you to go to the laundry immediately. Apparently they're short handed there." With nothing more to say to me, he walked away, running over to talk to another guard.

The nerve! First of all, he couldn't have managed to say sorry himself, which would have been forgivable if he hadn't added the insult of giving me a task in the same breath! I was so furious that I banished everyone from that room, and since I was the in charge of all the other maids, I had the power to do so. I wanted to be alone to sulk off this hurt, and be able to forgive Zuko. I didn't like to hold grudges. And besides, I didn't want to hurt Zuko further, **(She means emotionally of course) **and cause him to really lose it. About an hour into folding all of the ships laundry, Zuko appeared in the doorway.

"Listen, Mela, I'm sorry for how I acted. I was… out of line. I take full responsibility for your wounds. I just thought u would want to know. Mela?" His damn words. They always made me feel like scum for being so unforgiving towards him. How his life had been ton's times harder than mine! But I was in no mood to feel this way. Instead I became more angry at the fact that he always had to be so…so, nice! So I continued to fold the laundry instead. He got a strange look in his eye when I didn't respond. On that scared me.

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**WOW! Intense! What will Zuko do? **

**Ok, now for the contest! Ummmmmmmmmmm, hmmm, let's see. **

**OH! Ok, Finish this quote, and the most creative one gets the chapter dedicated to them! **

**When Life hands u lemons. Ok, well good luck!**


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